In 2019, pickleball was half as popular as badminton. Last year, it was more popular than baseball. What does its rise tell us about fads, fitness, and culture?
I’m (obviously) a Linda and am an old GenXer born in the 1960s. But it was an old lady name even then! I’ve always disliked it but one of its few upsides has seemed to be its utter lack of trendiness.
Re pickleball, my husband and I tried it during the pandemic when we were bored in a Great Lakes resort town. It was kind of dull and inactive so we ended up doing “no rules pickleball,” which was basically just trying to keep volleys going for as long as possible, whatever it took. I haven’t got into it in DC (I am not aware of any related controversy in our sleepy Red Line neighborhood) but it seems as if it could be a fun social activity.
I remember in high school gym in the 90s we played pickleball and the entire class loved it and I remember thinking “why isn’t this game more popular”? The other sport we enjoyed was handball, so I’m predicting that as the next sports craze!
Great essay. A few weeks ago, I watched a middle aged, relatively out of shape man, berate a female employee at the local YMCA over a Pickleball scheduling snafu that clearly wasn't her fault. It seems there were basketball games being played on the indoor basketball court when Pickleball had been scheduled.
As I watched him, I couldn't help but notice his sense of entitlement, self-importance, and self-righteousness over not getting to play what is, as you described it, a fad and not really a sport. Right or wrong, I think the perception is that many Pickleball players are like him.
The other issue, I think, is Pickleball players are interlopers. Taking over tennis courts and basketball courts, which limits the ability of tennis and basketball participants to play the sport for which their courts were designed and built at a given facility.
Ha—did this happen at the bed stuy YMCA in Brooklyn by any chance?
And FWIW, there’s been a lot of pickleball infrastructure built over the last few years—at least in highly populated suburban areas—that I feel the “scourge” or dare I say “gangrenous” to mitigate this exact problem and meet the ever-rising demand.
I also feel there may be some staying power to this sport—I played with my parents over the weekend on Long Island at a dedicated outdoor court with 3 courts and it was packed with people with a line of 4 games waiting to get on. Compare this to disc golf, a sport this ultimate frisbee player picked up during the pandemic, which has seen its growth rate plummet in the last few years post COVID.
Excellent essay, Derek. The rational issue with pickleball is the noise. In East Hampton, there are now severe noise abatement requirements for both new pickleball and tennis courts.
The baby name trends are also fascinating. New parents now have access to a lot of data about names but if too many choose names that are not too popular or too unusual then those names will become "too popular."
Humans: A generally shallow, devolving species forever chasing the next disposable shiny thing, no matter how ridiculous, expensive, or preferably dangerous. This species competes over who had it first, who has the best equipment pertaining to the fad of choice, and fadiots will be the first to grow tired of it, then move on to the next stupid faddish thing. The landfills and oceans are literally full of old fads.
I’m (obviously) a Linda and am an old GenXer born in the 1960s. But it was an old lady name even then! I’ve always disliked it but one of its few upsides has seemed to be its utter lack of trendiness.
Re pickleball, my husband and I tried it during the pandemic when we were bored in a Great Lakes resort town. It was kind of dull and inactive so we ended up doing “no rules pickleball,” which was basically just trying to keep volleys going for as long as possible, whatever it took. I haven’t got into it in DC (I am not aware of any related controversy in our sleepy Red Line neighborhood) but it seems as if it could be a fun social activity.
I remember in high school gym in the 90s we played pickleball and the entire class loved it and I remember thinking “why isn’t this game more popular”? The other sport we enjoyed was handball, so I’m predicting that as the next sports craze!
Great essay. A few weeks ago, I watched a middle aged, relatively out of shape man, berate a female employee at the local YMCA over a Pickleball scheduling snafu that clearly wasn't her fault. It seems there were basketball games being played on the indoor basketball court when Pickleball had been scheduled.
As I watched him, I couldn't help but notice his sense of entitlement, self-importance, and self-righteousness over not getting to play what is, as you described it, a fad and not really a sport. Right or wrong, I think the perception is that many Pickleball players are like him.
The other issue, I think, is Pickleball players are interlopers. Taking over tennis courts and basketball courts, which limits the ability of tennis and basketball participants to play the sport for which their courts were designed and built at a given facility.
Ha—did this happen at the bed stuy YMCA in Brooklyn by any chance?
And FWIW, there’s been a lot of pickleball infrastructure built over the last few years—at least in highly populated suburban areas—that I feel the “scourge” or dare I say “gangrenous” to mitigate this exact problem and meet the ever-rising demand.
I also feel there may be some staying power to this sport—I played with my parents over the weekend on Long Island at a dedicated outdoor court with 3 courts and it was packed with people with a line of 4 games waiting to get on. Compare this to disc golf, a sport this ultimate frisbee player picked up during the pandemic, which has seen its growth rate plummet in the last few years post COVID.
Excellent essay, Derek. The rational issue with pickleball is the noise. In East Hampton, there are now severe noise abatement requirements for both new pickleball and tennis courts.
The baby name trends are also fascinating. New parents now have access to a lot of data about names but if too many choose names that are not too popular or too unusual then those names will become "too popular."
Also you want a unique name but often times not one that is so unique it will seem odd
Humans: A generally shallow, devolving species forever chasing the next disposable shiny thing, no matter how ridiculous, expensive, or preferably dangerous. This species competes over who had it first, who has the best equipment pertaining to the fad of choice, and fadiots will be the first to grow tired of it, then move on to the next stupid faddish thing. The landfills and oceans are literally full of old fads.
Here's to hoping for more acute backlashes to the present.